Comments on: Desire Named Street Car Rears Its Ugly Head Yet Again

By: Zippo

Zippo — Fri, 31 Jan 2014 00:09:28 +0000

All politicians should be wired to a lie detector when making any public speak or policy

By: Flyhead

Flyhead — Mon, 20 Jan 2014 22:31:14 +0000

Steel rails are about as flexible as the metal they are made from and the cost per mile of service is not cheap.

I can remember when I was a lad of 10 yrs. old going to St. Louis to visit and all the different modes of transportation we had from street cars, busses hooked up to an overhead electric grid and just plain busses and taxi cabs.

Most families in the early 1950’s had one car and dad shared rides with other workers because gas cost $0.30/gallon give or take a penny. Weekly wages were $75 if you had a decent job.

Point is, we are all spoiled and think everyone needs a car who is 16 yrs. old or older. The reality is, WE DON’T but we got to this point on the easy pay plan for cars. If gas cost us much as it does in Europe the landscape and demand for public transit would change.

By: Werner

Werner — Mon, 20 Jan 2014 21:59:03 +0000

How much federal money is available for the project? Subquestion, when do those dollars go away if we don’t use them for transportation?

By: Marcus

Marcus — Mon, 20 Jan 2014 16:20:13 +0000

The motive behind a streetcar is to use as an economic tool. (the theory) If there are dedicated transit routes that cannot be moved (more or less), you will have developers buy in and economic growth will persists. A bus route doesn’t have the same effect even though it may be a wiser use of money. If there was more work-force housing and mode-share transit options in Boise the street car would work well. I am all for transit options, but I am more likely to want a solid Bus Rapid Transit project before a streetcar.

By: costaprettypenny

costaprettypenny — Sun, 19 Jan 2014 23:31:47 +0000

We were at a function last night and someone mentioned the “street car” deal may be rearing its ugly head again. All we heard from the group was disgust of the Mayor and his cronies on the council.

By: Cynic

Cynic — Sun, 19 Jan 2014 16:26:28 +0000

DO: yes, Dave is spending our tax dollars on this foolish endeavor and it will continue until we vote these clowns out of office. That won’t happen until we get voters to get off their duff and vote. 15-20% voter turnout is pathetic!

By: DO

DO — Sun, 19 Jan 2014 03:32:47 +0000

Salt Lake City has a very successful bus system along with their train system and most cases both run until 12:00AM. Even Jackpot, NV has a reliable shuttle bus via Cactus Pete’s that runs between casinos, parking lots, the RV park, etc. 24-hours.

Boise has a marginal bus system. Oh it gets some from point A to B, but I hear that if you work a swing shift you are out of luck.

Now the Mayor wants his Trolley again. Grant monies come from the tax payer – you know the very same taxpayer that says (or should) say NO STREETCAR! Sigh, I guess our taxes WILL go up. Surprised?

By: IronDeath

IronDeath — Sun, 19 Jan 2014 02:36:29 +0000

I laughed when the City folks said they were looking for a “steering committee…”

Just as you don’t need anyone to steer a streetcar with its fixed tracks — the City doesn’t need a steering committee to steer this project as it is stuck in pre-defined tracks.

By: Kaatherine Frazier

Kaatherine Frazier — Sat, 18 Jan 2014 18:45:59 +0000

Clever title, Dave! You may have to teach the young folks what it refers to.

How about a bus system that will take folks home later than six-ish. If there’s no demand for that, what makes a street car desirable? Boise doesn’t even have a hill like San Francisco, for extra charm.

By: Cynic

Cynic — Sat, 18 Jan 2014 18:15:56 +0000

Stupid, stupid, stupid! What a waste of money!